The red brick office building next to Pittsburgh City Hall now bore a sign reading, "Senator John Murphy Campaign Headquarters."
The space was once the office of a bankrupt logistics company. Now, dozens of phones rang off the hook as volunteers in headsets repeated well-rehearsed canvassing spiels into their microphones.
A massive map of Pennsylvania on the wall was densely packed with red and blue pins.
Karen Miller stood before the map, her finger tracing invisible battle lines across its surface.
"It's a deadlock."
Karen's voice was level.
"We're solid in the west. In Allegheny, Beaver, and Westmoreland Counties—the heartland of steel and coal—Murphy's support is over sixty percent."
"The Unions have been effective. Leo's endorsement is hard currency out here."
Her finger moved east, crossing the Appalachian Mountains, and stopped on the densely populated area along the Delaware Riverfront.
